GOD REIGNS IN THE MIDST OF YOUR ENEMIES
(First part)
Memory verse: (Psalms 110:1-2) “ The LORD said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies! ”
It’s great to understand that God is in charge in heaven and on earth. Heaven is his throne and the earth is his footstool (Is 66:1). God is supreme over all things. He is the king of kings. He is the Lord of Lords. He’s the almighty God. He reigns in heaven and on the earth. He is the creator of all things. He rules in the kingdoms of men (Dan4:17). He upholds all creation by the word of his power (Heb1:3). He monitors the movements of the stars, moon and the sun. The space is full of millions and millions of stars. It has planets and other bodies man has not yet discovered and all these are the works of His hands and He controls their operations. He watches His creation and they all fulfill the purposes He created them for. His power and authority rules them, they work at His commands. They all hear his voice.
The scripture says all things were made by Him, living and non-living things. They were made by the word of his mouth and he rules them by the word of his mouth. Every thing hears his voice, that’s why he said to Ezekiel to command the dry bones to hear the voice of the Lord (Ez 37:1-10). He controls the hearts of the kings like rivers; He is the one who has the password to the hearts of men (Jer 17:9-10). He can soften or harden men’s hearts. He hardened the heart of Pharaoh without his permission. He touched the heart of king Cyrus. He shook the life of king Nebuchadnezzar. He is the Lord of all. He is so great and mighty that He reigns in the midst of his enemies. Every knee bows before him in heaven and on earth. Satan and devils tremble before him. He sent dreams in the head of Nebuchadnezzar that troubled him, He sent dreams in the heart of pharaoh, He raise up one and He put down another.
There’s no one like Him in heaven and on earth. He shook Egypt by His mighty judgments, He shakes the heavens, and He shakes the wilderness, the seas and the land. He breaks the rod of the oppressor; He frees the preys of Satan, and the captives of mighty demons. He let them go free. He moves mountains and calms the seas. You can trust this God, He never fails. He never grows weary. He’s our everlasting Rock. May he reign in your life and circumstances, family, business and ministry. I came to tell you, your God reigns.
Tomorrow we will see, ‘ God’s turning moments’
(Second part)
Memory verse: (Isaiah 66:8) " Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall the earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion was in labor, She gave birth to her children "
God can change the course of your life in a day. Joseph woke up one morning a prisoner and the same day evening he was a prime minister in the greatest kingdom of his days. His days of suffering and waiting were many, but his turning moment came only in one day. Mordecai walk up one morning with death hanging over his head, but by the same day evening he was wearing a crown. The book of Esther has one of the great stories of God’s wonder working ways. It's a book in which God is not mentioned at all, not even the Holy Spirit or angels, not even a dream not even a prophet. Yet it records one of the greatest works God ever done to uplift the Jews.
The Jews had been suffering from the days when God took them to Babylon. Seventy years of captivity were over, but it was not yet over with the children of Israel. They were still scattered in the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Persia and were still under the rule of that worldwide empire. God’s time to lift them from slavery came. Their turning moment had come. God’s time to show them mercy had come. And God had his own plan to bring this to pass. It was a plan where God played the central role, as a film star, yet invisible and silent. Nowhere in the Bible God ever worked so silently and incognito yet so mightily. The whole drama starts with God divinely positioning Mordecai, a Jew, in the gate of the king’s palace. And this central figure in the drama had raised up a girl who was an orphan, Esther. Then God worked a way to remove Vashti from the palace as a first lady and replaced her with Esther who was a Jew. The drama proceeds with God causing the king to promote Haman. When Haman was exalted, every one had to bow to him but Mordecai refused and this caused Haman to get angry and sought a way to destroy all Jews. He wrote letters to all provinces for killing the Jews. When Mordecai learned this plot, he wept and asked Esther to do something. They prayed and fasted and God moved and turned things around. Haman was hanged and the Jews were delivered. Mordecai took up Haman’s position. And all Jews were saved. They became great, no longer slaves but rulers in the kingdom.
Tomorrow we will learn ‘ Your turning point’
(Third part)
Memory verse: (Acts2:1-4) " When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance "
The turning point for the Apostles of the Lord Jesus came in one day. It was the day of Pentecost. All Jews from around the world had turned up to Jerusalem for the feast of Pentecost. Men had their plans but God also had a plan. God messed up the Jews day and instead poured out the Holy Spirit and revival broke out that left three thousand people converted in one day. All the Apostles were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, they began to write a new story, they began to cast out devils, they preached the gospel, they healed the sick, and they turned the world upside down. When God turns your life around, you begin to turn your world upside down. When God changes your life, you begin to change your world around you.
Our God reigns, he is Lord over seasons and times, He’s the Lord over circumstance, trials, diseases and problems. He is the Lord over what happens to us. He is the Alpha and Omega. He is in control over your destiny. Your nights may seem to be endless, but the truth is they are not. There’s no night without a morning. Your captivity has an end, your sickness has an expiry date, your tormentors has deadline from God, your enemies have boundaries set by God, God is reigning in the midst of your enemies. There’s a day God has ordained for your miseries to end. There’s a day when God will wipe away your tears. There’s a day God will send away your tormentors and send you comforters. There’s a day God is going to put a new song in your mouth and fill your heart with joy. There is day when God will do things in your life and it would seem like a dream.
I just want to encourage you to keep trusting God and don’t be disturbed by God’s silence. God does not need to be seen to work. We don’t need to feel, hear God to know that he’s with us and he’s working for our good. We don’t walk by sight or feelings but we walk by faith. Just get to know his promises in his word and believe them. God is in charge.
Tomorrow we will study about, ‘ God has a plan for your life’
(Fourth part)
Memory verse: (Jer29:11) " For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope "
You need to know that you are not alone. God is with you. GOD IS IN YOU. Don’t you know that you’re the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor3:16)? God loves you and has a plan for your life. God’s plan for you is not to send you evil, troubles, diseases, hunger, poverty etc. God‘s plans for you are only good. God has plans to bring good things in your life, to give you peace and not confusion, to give you a future. You are not a survivor; You are not a destitute but blessed with a great and meaningful future. God planned your future even before you were born (Jer1:5). None of the Jews who were living in the kingdom of Persia could think that God was thinking about them. No prophesy, no voice from God. Heaven was very silent. God’s silence does not mean his absence. God had a big plan to do good to the Jews, and He worked out his plans silently and by the end the Jews were above all the peoples of the earth. Don’t lose heart my sister, my brother, it is as though God had forgotten you, because you’ve been calling but without answer. God’s silence does not mean he has not heard. God answered the Jews silently. God works in ways that are far beyond our ways. Simply trust him, he’ll work out his plans for you.
You’ve never been forgotten or forsaken by God. You’re precious in God’s eyes; He bought you with the matchless blood of His Son. He loves you very much, He wants you to be happy, He wants you to be fruitful, He wants you to be healthy, He wants to be free, He wants you to prosper, and He will fight your battles. Your life is valuable before God. God will bless you and make you a blessing. His plan to bless us was accomplished by the sacrifice of His Son on the cross. When Christ was dying on the cross, He said it's finished. Christ death on the cross, His resurrection and his ascension on high, brought our forgiveness, freedom from satanic bondages, healing from diseases, our peace, our prosperity, our blessings etc. It’s time to step into our inheritance by faith in the name of Jesus and enjoy the victory, peace and glory, Amen. God has set the table before you in the midst of your enemies, its time for you to ascend the table of the Lord and begin to feast and celebrate, Amen.
Tomorrow we will see ‘ God can use anything’
(Fifth part)
Memory verse: (Exodus 4:1-2) Then Moses answered and said, “But suppose they will not believe me or listen to my voice; suppose they say, ‘The LORD has not appeared to you.’ So the LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A rod.”
God’s ways are not limited. He’s the almighty God. God is omnipotent. With Him nothing is impossible. He’s the Lord of Hosts. God is above all powers. All powers, principalities, demonic powers, bow before him. They are all under his authority. There’s nothing that is not subject to God’s ruling power and authority, in heaven, on earth and under the earth. He’s lord. God can use anything to bring to pass his plans. God turned Moses’ shepherd’s staff into a divine weapon that did great wonders in Egypt. Samson just picked up a stray jawbone of an ass and God used it as great sword that slew one thousand philistines in one fight. In this story of Esther, Mordecai and the Jews, God used people in great ways. Talk of Esther, Mordecai, and the king, Haman, Vashti etc, God was using all these key players in His plan. God moved their steps without them knowing. God controlled every decision they took. All things Haman did looks evil, but they were all God guided to fulfill his plan of liberating the Jews. The party the king made, and God controlled Vashti’s messes, so that Esther could come into the palace.
Judas Iscariot was a key player in the fulfillment of God’s redemption plan of mankind. What he did looks evil but that was God’s will. Joseph told his brothers who sold him into slavery In Egypt, that it was not them who sold him there but it was God who sent him there for saving his posterity (Gen 50:15-21). The scriptures crown this by saying, " All things work together for good for those who love the Lord and are called according to his purposes " (Rom8:28). God is already working out his plans to lift you up, to bless you, to bring you into the life he prepared for you, to victory etc. God is using people you don’t have any idea at all. God is using people you don’t see, people you may never meet in life, things you don’t think God can use. Bad or good people, God will use them to fulfill his plan for your life. Good or bad things, God will use them to make you kind of person He intends you to be. Friends or enemies God’s will use them to take you to the height were he created you to reach.
Tomorrow we will talk about ‘God’s timing’
(Sixth part)
Memory verse: (Eccl 3:11) " He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end "
God’s timing makes God’s purposes for our lives fruitful and satisfying. All things God created are controlled by time. Nights and days are controlled by time. Growth of all living things is controlled by time. Even, God’s plans are subject to God’s timetable. That’s why as God’s children we need to develop the virtues of patience and sensitivity. It's good to know God’s plans but it's also important to be sensitive to God’s timetable. We need to know if the plan is to take sometime, and we wait (Hab 2:1-3). Again we need know when it’s the right time to arise and possess. We have two problems: some believers just want everything now, they want their breakthrough now, answers to their prayers now, promise fulfillment now, and they think faith is about getting everything whenever and however you want it. These people get frustrated, because God does not work that way. Spiritual growth takes time, renewing of your mind takes time, maturing the fruit of the spirit takes time, character and attitude change take time and great effort.
Learning to walk with the Holy Spirit takes time, and there are no shortcuts. God has his ways and we ought to walk in his ways (Is 55:9). His ways are not our ways, we need to leave our ways behind and start to walk in his ways. God’s way is a narrow path but it leads to life and man's way is a broad one but leads to death. Sometimes God tells us to tarry, He told His disciples tarry in Jerusalem. For ten days they were in one place and in one accord. It seemed as though they accomplished nothing in those days. But that is man's assessment but in God‘s eyes they were doing His will that would lead them into a mighty season. When the Holy Spirit came, no one could sit in that upper room, but it was time to do what he had told them, i.e. go and make disciples of all nations. What is important in life is not being busy chasing shadows, but doing God’s will for our lives.
Effectiveness in life and ministry is knowing what God wants you to do and the place and the time to do it in the right way. The Apostles knew what the Lord had commanded them to do. They followed the instructions and they were effective, they fulfilled God’s will upon their lives in their generation. Its our turn to touch our generation, let follow God ‘s timetable.
Great weekend.
